China Reiterates Pledge to Boost Investment and Expedite Reforms

China will step up investment in areas including the real estate sector and give a push to wide-ranging economic reforms such as changing the fiscal and pricing systems, the country's powerful economic planning agency has said.

The remarks from the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) were a reiteration of existing government policies, Reuters reported.

ANZ Research said in a note to clients: "We are optimistic about China's economic outlook in the remainder of this year, as the growth momentum is picking up while the inflation remains mild. We maintain our forecast that China's economy will achieve the growth target of 7.5% this year."

Home Prices

China's home prices fell further in July 2014 over the previous month, two private surveys showed on 1 August.

Falling prices have discouraged housing construction and purchases, according to Bill Adams, senior international economist at PNC Financial Services.

Prices of new homes in 288 cities fell 0.1% in July from June, the fourth straight drop on a monthly basis, a poll by real estate services firm E-House China Holdings showed.

But home prices in July were still up 4.3% when compared to a year ago.

A separate poll by China Real Estate Index System (CREIS) showed average prices in 100 of the biggest cities fell 0.8% in July from June, the third successive monthly drop.

However, prices were still up 4.7% in July when compared to a year ago, CREIS said.

Realty and Reforms

Weakness in China's property sector posed near-term risks for the economy despite signs of steadying, Markus Rodlauer, deputy director of the IMF's Asia Pacific Department and the fund's mission chief for China, said in July.

Such near-term risks in the economy remained controllable owing to the Communist regime's policy buffers, but Beijing must drive reforms as the current path of growth is unsustainable, Rodlauer added.

The world's second largest economy expanded slightly faster than expected in the second quarter of 2014, at 7.5%, supported by an increase in government stimulus.